My Family

Nicholas Andrew

Nick is my sweet 7 year old. He is in first grade and he's a fabulous kid. Nick is very smart, very sensitive, very into Star Wars, bakugan, Wii, playing, learning, and loving life! He's a super kid and a pure joy to be around. His contagious smile and sweet freckles melt my heart. Nick is a perfect big brother and I am so proud of him and honored to be his Momma!

Adam Joseph

Adam is my baby. My youngest and most cuddley, yet awnry child! He is quite the comedian at his young age and is sure to be entertaining. He is sweet, loving, funny, and innocent. He has a perfect smile, an hilarious sense of humor, and he is totally genuine. Adam is a ray of sunshine on a cloudy day!

Mothers

A mother holds her children's hands for a while...their hearts forever.~ Author Unknown

I never knew how much love my heart could hold until someone called me "mommy."~ Author Unknown

If at first you don't succeed, do it the way your mother told you to.~ Author Unknown

I'd rather be a mother than anyone on earthBringing up a child or two of unpretentious birth...I'd rather tuck a little child all safe and sound in bedthan twine a chain of diamonds about my [carefree] head.I'd rather wash a smudgy face with round, bright, baby eyesThan paint the pageantry of fame or walk among the wise.~ Meredith Gray

Wednesday, April 28, 2010

I have about 8 more pounds to be exactly were I want to be. I am not so interested in the weight as much as I am eating healthier and getting fit and tone. I am a nutritionist, with a bachelors degree in nutrition and dietetics and a successful career, so you would think it would be easy. Well without support and accountability, it is not! People wonder why I am doing this because I am small, and I still wear a size 6, but I still feel the need to be healthier.

I loved this challenge when I read about it on the This Mommy Works blog and I knew it was exactly what I was looking for.

Monday, April 26, 2010

Since I am writing this blog for my kids and I use this post to tell them some special tidbits about their lives, I think I should start at the beginning.

Today's post is entitled "The Day I Found Out I Was Pregnant"!

Nick- You were quite an unexpected, pleasant suprise! Having a baby at this time was the furthest thing from Mommy & Daddy's mind, but the day we found out we were pregnant was so exciting, awesome, thrilling, scary, and shocking - all at the same time. You see, we were on the 5 year plan, married for 5 years and then have children. I found out I was pregnant on April 3, 2003, one month before our 2nd anniversary. After about 2 weeks of "wondering" and being nervous to find out, I gave in and stopped at Wal-Mart and bought a test on the way to work. I took it as soon as I got to work **Suprise**. I was so excited all day, so needless to say, not much work got done. I went home and nervously paced the floor until Daddy came home. I told him right away in the kitchen and words could not describe the shocked look he gave me! We were both so excited!! After Daddy treated me to a special dinner, we came home and started making the phone calls. It was a very special day. You arrived almost 4 weeks early, right before Thanksgiving. So tiny and beautiful.Adam -The day I found out I was pregnant with you was not nearly as shocking. You were strategically planned, so to speak! After miscarrying 3 months before, we wanted you very badly. On the morning of May 5, 2006, Daddy talked me into buying a test on the way home from running errands on this Sunday morning. I was so scared because I knew I couldn't go through losing another baby. Daddy took Nick out to the sandbox to build castles and told me to take the test. Low and behold, 2 pink lines told me you were coming! I told Daddy and Nick and we were so excited. Quickly the phone calls began. I must say every doctors appointment made me nervous but your precious heartbeat was strong and healthy and the following January, you joined our family!

I was blog surfing on my lunch hour and I found this neat post through a blog friend of a blog friend and I thought I would play. I think it is meant to be posted on Sunday, but I just found it today. Let's just pretend!

The questions..

1. If you could star in any movie genre..what would it be..romance..horror..comedy..suspense or action? Romance - I am a hopeless romantic

2. Do you recycle? Not as much as I should - to answer honestly, I don't.

3. Have you ever been to a strip club? Oh my - my bachelorette party was quite a night and it cured me from ever wanting to go to another one! Although I always thought it would be fun to go to one with my hubby ;)

4. Do you have a nickname? My hubby calls me dear or babe, some family members call me Ally (since my name is Alison), I like Mommy the best!

5. What's a name you can't stand to be called? It's not a name but my husband will whistle for me in a crowd if I don't hear him call my name - it drives me crazy but he knows it always gets my attention

1. Where are my sunglasses? I lost them last week & had to buy another pair!2. If wishes were horses people would think I lived on a ranch! 3. I'd like to see my children grown up happy, healthy, and successful.4. When I was a teen, I thought parents didn't understand, now I know they understood all too well :)5. One of my grandmother's favorite sayings is "if you don't listen, you feel".6. I'd have a hard time doing without my cellphone.7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to our first t-ball practice of the season, tomorrow my plans include dodging raindrops as we are out and about and Sunday, I want to catch up on things around the house!

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

As I was getting ready for work this morning, and almost ready to through kids in carseats and head out the door, Nick handed me an awkwardly stuffed envelope and said "open it Mom, it's from me."

I stopped what I was doing and gave him my full attention. Inside the envelope was a brown piece of construction paper with on simple sentence written in his best kindergarten handwriting.

It read -

"I Love You Mommy"

It melted my heart and suddenly my world stood still and the hustle and bustle of my morning routine took a back seat as I gave him a hug and told him that was the best present I could have ever received. I have it on my desk at work and I cherish it!

Monday, April 19, 2010

This blog was started to document memories for my children and share those memories with family and friends. Along the way I was fortunate enough to meet some fantastic "blog friends" as well. Each week I am committing myself to document some special information for my kids about their lives. This week is all about Numbers.

Nicholas

Due date / Actual birthday - you were due to arrive December 12th, but decided to come on November 15, 2003 - it was quite an experience that I will share later.

Birth Statistics - 5 lbs & 3 oz, 18 inches long - teeny, weeny tiny!

Age of first overnight trip - 6 weeks old to Indiana to visit your paternal grandfather - and you did great.

Age and Month you began to walk - October 2004, 11 months old - a little (a lot) wobbly, but you did it and we were so proud!!

Date you started school - August 24, 2010 will never forget it! You looked so grown up at 5 years old!! It was so hard for everyone to believe you were ready to start kindergarten.

Adam

Due Date/Actual Birthdate - January 10, Scheduled C-Section on January 3rd, 2007, schedule, organized and calm. Just how I like it!! It went very smooth.

Age of First Overnight Trip - 5 months old to Lancaster to visit Thomas the Tank Engine and play at Dutch Wonderland. We had a great time and you were so well behaved.

Age and Month you began to walk - December 2007, 11 months - very unsteady but independant. Just in time for Christmas, as everyone predicted.

Age you began preschool - 20 months, August 2008. You cried every day I dropped you off for about 4 months straight, but your teachers assured me you stopped as soon as i was out the door :)

Feel free to create your own number questions, or use mine. This topic will probably surface again in the furture so I can document more dates, times, weights, etc. but I like to limit each posting to 5 per child.

6. One of my worst temptations is going out to eat; those invitations are hard to resist!

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to family time, tomorrow my plans include yard work and then going out to a special restaurant with my hubby and Sunday, I want to hang out at home!

Wednesday, April 14, 2010

I love gardening and tending to my flowers. We put a lot of hard work into our yard because we started with a clean slate after the house was built. Everything we planted is finally getting big enough to be proud of. Below are my purple lilacs, deep red azaleas, and a pink tulip. The flowers are so pretty this spring. It's so nice to be able to go out in my yard and cut fresh flowers when a bouquet dies and replenish them.

I love blogging about my life and family. It is my hope to keep this blog going forever and leave it as a memoir of sorts for my children. I do not write about special moments or share special pictures just to share them with friends (both friends I actually know & blog friends) without reason. I want my blog to serve as a memory book for my children. I began scrapbooking with Nick and I have completed up to his 3rd year and I have Adam's completed up to his 8th month - and then I discovered blogging. It is much more convientant and much faster. I still hope to work on their albums, but in reality, this blog is their album. With that said - I have decided to commit to a weekly post of something specific I want them to remember or know years down the road. I can't remember everything in hopes of telling them someday, so through this blog, they can read about the quirky, special, silly, embarassing, and special things we have done as a family, what they have done individually, or maybe just some rambling I feel are important to remember.

If you like the idea, feel free to copy the concept. It's a great way to let your children know about their lives and how much their Mom cared to chronicle it all!

My next post will be the "offical" For My Kids Tuesday posting of special tidbits I want them to know.

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Hi, I'm Alison. I am 34 years old, I am a busy Momma of 2 young boys. I run a household, I work full time and I am a wife to a wonderful husband. We met at Indiana University of Pa. I have been married for 9 lovely years but we have been together for 15! My life has turned out exactly how I had dreamed and in my eyes, it's practically perfect! Welcome and thanks for enjoying my happiness.

Our Anniversary

Ray is my wonderful 33 yr old hubby. We met our freshman year at collge in 1996 and have together ever since. He is a high school physics & chemistry teacher. In addition to teaching children, he is fantastic father to his own. I could not ask for a better man to be my life partner and best friend. We may not agree on everything, but in the end, we agree on everything that is truly important. He is a great man, perfect father, loving husband and I could not ask for more!

Husbands & Wives

A perfect wife is one who doesn't expect a perfect husband. ~ Author Unknown

I dreamed of a wedding of elaborate elegance; a church filled with flowers and friends. I asked him what kind of wedding he wished for; he said one that would make me his wife.~ Author Unknown